Seoul seeks support for Korean reconciliation

MOSCOW - Choo Mi-ae, the Chair of the South Korean National Assembly’s group on cooperation with the Russian upper house, has called on parliaments of other countries to continue supporting efforts aimed at inter-Korean reconciliation. “I ask parliaments of all counties to continue supporting us in order to put an end to the conflict and start a new era of peace and prosperity ... Thanks to the international support and attention, during this year, the Korean Peninsula was in peace and full of hopes like never before,” Choo said on Monday at the international conference called “The role of parliaments in modern world,” which commemorated the 25th anniversary of the foundation of the Russian upper house of parliament.The lawmaker highlighted the important role international support had in the talks. “Peacemaking energy that came from different parts of the world has allowed us to hold the Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang and enabled the leaders of the two parts of the Korean Peninsula to hold three meetings in the demilitarized zone in Panmunjom and exchange calls for peace,” Choo said.

The lawmaker also pointed out the progress achieved by the two nations.

“Having rejected hostile actions in the demilitarized zone, we continue cooperation in all areas such as railways, management, sports and culture,” Choo added.

The situation on the Korean Peninsula has improved since the beginning of this year as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un engaged in an active dialogue with US President Donald Trump and his South Korean Moon Jae-in. During the landmark Kim-Trump summit in June, the two leaders agreed that Pyongyang would make efforts to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula in exchange for the United States and South Korea freezing their military drills as well as the potential removal of US sanctions.